Kim Woo-bin Enjoys Breakthrough Year in Hit Soaps, Movie

Kim Woo-bin has had a stellar year, starring in two hit TV series and the highly anticipated film "Friend 2." He said his height -- he is 187cm -- and strong "samurai" eyebrows give him an edgier look that may have helped catapult him to fame.

"I think I kept getting cast as rebellious characters this year thanks to my looks," he said, smiling. "Everything I wished for came true this year, so I'll never forget this special time," said Kim, who earned critical acclaim for his acting skills despite only picking up the craft two years ago.

"I try to picture the life story of each character before I assume the role. I imagine when he was born and where, and the things he experienced in his life as if I were writing a novel."

However, he expressed concern about having played a number of similar characters in a row. "I was fortunate to make a strong impression on audiences with the roles I picked, but I'm also worried about being pigeonholed. Even though it's more of a challenge, I want to show a fuller range of what I can do," he said.

When he was in school, he dreamed of becoming a fashion model. "I was always pretty tall, and my mom was very interested in fashion. This naturally led me to dream of becoming a fashion model," said Kim, adding that he learned jazz dance and ballet to further sculpt his physique.

"I never even considered acting back then. But I realized that fashion models also need to know how to act to a certain extent so they can pose for pictures."

He said acting now consumes his thoughts and most of his waking hours. "I want to be an actor rather than a star," he said, adding that his enthusiasm for the profession never wanes despite long sleep-starved weeks during production.

"When I'm shooting a TV drama I dream of taking several months off afterwards to rest. But when it's done, I already feel empty inside and feel hungry to move on to the next project and try something new."